Cafe Sixx
by Wad3
Summary: Nestled in between two office buildings sits a small cafe, tended to lovingly by it's grumpy boss and motley crew of employees. Order a Cafe au Lait, or some delicious macaroons, and forget about reality for a while. (Cafe AU)
1. Everyday is a Story

::TRIGGER WARNINGS:: Implied Abusive Relationship, Harsh Language,

::PREFERENCE WARNINGS:: OC Insert, Ambiguous Ships, Cafe AU

::CREDIT:: All Bleach characters are, of course, owned by Tite Kubo.

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Hi! Welcome to my fic.

The chapters contained are fairly short, as they're based off of prompts, and written in more of a vignette format. This fic will include most of the characters from the beginning of the series, to about the middle of the Arrancar arc. So, enjoy your favorite captains & Espada in various human forms.

This is more of a fun writing practice for me, but if you end up enjoying it, all the better!

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1\. Every Day is a Story

On this particular day, at a particular coffee shop, a young woman named Ai sat silently at the last booth in the corner with a laptop. She'd never previously stepped into this cafe before, but recently needing to find a new place to sit and write had urged her to explore her options. Now, staring aimlessly at the blank word doc in front of her, she'd found a new obstacle to overcome: Her own writers block.

Procrastination at the helm, Ai decided to take in her surroundings instead. The cafe was small, but lovingly kept. Potted plants and decor seemed to be perfectly placed in order to give the place a homey feeling to it. Ai never even knew this hole-in-the-wall existed until today. The only people in it besides herself were three of the wait staff.

First was a bubbly girl, leaned against the counter, happily engaged with talking to her coworker. She seemed like the friendliest of the three. Standing opposite of her on the other side was a ginger-haired man, half-listening as he polished cups behind the counter. Lastly, the dark haired young man with the sad eyes who had taken Ai's order several moments earlier. He was soft spoken, but pleasant. None of the trio looked much older than Ai herself. She absently wondered what kind of boss would hire so many college students.

'Maybe to attract a younger clientele?' As the thought crossed her mind, the dark-haired waitor returned to her table.

With the same quiet tone, he barely made a sound as he placed the cup beside her laptop. "Here's your order, Miss." "Thank you, ah..." Ai paused to read his name tag, before smiling a bit as she looked up at him "Ulquiorra."

He seemed surprised at first, but nodded in thanks. "You're welcome. Enjoy." Ulquiorra returned to his post as quickly as he'd come, leaving Ai to wallow in her unmoving lack of inspiration.

Her eyes rested on the coffee sitting left of her. She had ordered a caramel latte, hoping the sugar would overpower the bitter taste. Taking the warm cup into her hand, she stared down at the bear that had been shaped on the foam. She couldn't help but glance up at her waiter, 'It's surprising someone so gloomy looking could make something so cute...'

As Ai thoughtfully sipped the sweet drink, she noticed that the sole waitress had suddenly appeared in the chair across from her. The impromptu movement almost caused Ai to choke on her coffee.

"Ahhh- Sorry, sorry!" The girl pleaded, handing Ai several napkins out of the dispenser. She laughed nervously, "I didn't mean to scare you!"

Setting her cup down, for fear of spilling it on her precious laptop, Ai dried her lips with the abundance of napkins that had been shoved into her hands. "It's alright..."

With no pause, the waitress resumed talking. "I don't think I've ever seen you in here before. Are you from around here?" she asked, before interrupting herself, "Oh- hah! Sorry, I'm Nel." Nel seemed to purposefully flash her name tag with a broad smile. Glancing at the badge, Ai slowly answered her new, albeit undesired, friend, "Ah, Ai... I live nearby... but, no, I've never been in here before. I usually have tea at Espada."

Nel appeared surprised, before let out a long, impressed "Oooooh." A grin suddenly broke onto her pretty features. "Espada is a nice tea room. Their waiters are so cute, but don't let boss hear any talk about that place, he'll totally rip my head off. What made you decide to find to this little place?" Ai barely followed the rapid pace that Nel spoke at, but at least caught the last question. She paused for a long time, gazing at the deformed bear in her cup. "I'm... not really comfortable talking about that.

Despite her brazen tone, Nel seemed to understand almost immediately. She changed the subject almost as soon as she started it, "Are you working on homework?" Feeling a little touched, Ai let herself smile as she shook her head. "No, I'm a writer." A pause came, Ai's expression deflating as she remembered her writers block. "Well... aspiring, I guess you'd say..." Ignoring Ai's self-loathing, Nels' eyes lit up with delight. "A writer? Have you written anything? Can I read!?"

A blush slowly bloomed over Ai's pale skin. "I-I published a poetry book... b-but it didn't sell very well."

Fishing through the messenger bag, hung on the back of her chair, Ai produced a small book, bound in a red cover. She handed it to Nel, almost reluctantly. Nel smiled as she excitedly flipped through the pages. Halfway through, she looked up from the words. "These are really good, Ai! I wonder why it didn't sell..."

Watching the bubbly waitress read intently, Ai noticed a shadow suddenly looming over Nel's shoulder. Her eyes followed the source to the scowling face of a very tall man.

"Um... Nel?"

She became attentive at the sound of her name, "Yes, Ai?"

"Behind you..."

At first she appeared confused, but as her eyes slowly widened, it seemed the realization was beginning to hit her. Maybe also a hint of dread, Ai noted. Slowly, the girls' head turned to look up at the threatening figure behind her.

"B-BosS!" she exclaimed, her voice coming out no deeper than a squeak. "I-I-I-I was just-"

The angry man finally opened his mouth, letting out the bark held within it, "GET YOUR ASS BACK TO WORK, NEL. NOW."

With a short scream, Nel jumped to her feet, "I-I'M SORRY!" With little time to spare, she managed to turn to Ai. "Could I borrow this to read?" "NEL" Interrupted, who Ai was to assume, the boss. Unnerved by the demonic shout, Ai smiled. "Sure. Borrow it for as long as you like." "Thanks!"

With not but a glare, Nel scrambled back to the counter, gaining a mocking snort from the other waiter. Ai shared a quiet stare with the boss-man, wondering if his scowl was a default expression for him, before he lumbered after Nel.

Quietly, Ai decided that this cafe would be a fine spot to become a regular.


	2. You Have No New Messages

2\. You Have No New Messages

Cafe Sixx was busy today. At least four more people than usual were seated randomly amongst the tables, all couples talking quietly to one another. Though this went stubbornly ignored by the recently-acquired regular, she had distracted herself, staring at the blank message screen of her cell phone, with a mixture of contempt and waiting playing on her, usually calm, features. By the sixth time of obsessively checking the silent device, Nel decided it was finally time to stick her nose where it rarely belonged.

With a whipped-cream-topped cappuccino as offering, Nel braved the negative aura the dusty-rose haired girl gave off, in way too much abundance.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

Ai's bitter expression seemed to fade, though she still didn't feel much like talking. She put her phone face down with a sigh. "I don't need pennies... but that cappuccino looks good."

Nel smiled, placing the cappuccino down, glad to hear that Ai wasn't in too bad of a mood. Inconspicuously glancing around, she noticed Grimmjow was serving the table on the opposite side of the cafe. This gave her just enough time to squeeze Ai for information. "Alright, spill! What's got you so glum, chum?" she asked, scooting her chair closer for effect.

A heavy sigh came as Nel's answer, as Ai silently contemplated her situation. It wasn't that she didn't trust Nel. Over the last few weeks that Ai had been visiting Cafe Sixx, Nel proved to be friendly, talkative, and surprisingly intuitive, despite getting scolded quite often by Grimmjow and her coworkers. A pout came to her lips as she resigned herself to confiding in the nosy woman. "We usually meet at Espada for tea."

"My boyfriend, he-" she started, before being abruptly interrupted by an excited gasp. Ai put her hand up to halt the green haired girls' impending scream." Nel. NEL. No." "Sorry..." Ai watched her bite her lip and shrink into her chair, before returning to her explanation. "We had a really big fight and-" Having to pause and take in Nel's enraptured expression, she narrowed her eyes, not knowing whether to be entertained or really annoyed. "-and I stopped going to Espada, and I went to stay at my parents' to piss him off. That's why I started coming here. I guess my plan didn't really work." she sighed, staring down at her phone again. "He hasn't sent me anything in two weeks."

"That asshole!" Nel exclaimed, after finally finding her composure. "What was the fight about?" The exhaustion of the situation was obvious on Ai's face as she slumped back against her chair. "I met up with a group of friends from school. I guess somewhere along the night he saw me talking to one of the boys. He cornered me the morning after when I went home, said he saw me flirting or something. Made me feel awful, even though I told him I wasn't cheating on him." "...but he didn't believe you." "Yeah..."

Nel frowned deeper than Ai had ever thought was possible, and huffily rested her cheek on her palm. "That's terrible. What's his deal?" "I don't know..." Ai sighed, mimicking Nel's position. "I knew from the start he was a little possessive, and it was fine. I found it attractive, but he's acting like I had slept with the guy. I told him he was insane. " Ai rubbed her temple, remembering the event vividly.

"Clearly. What happened after that?" Nel commented, her nose wrinkling in disgust.

Sighing heavily, Ai shrugged and mumbled, deciding she had said enough. Reliving the scene was more than nauseating. "I left." As Nel quietly listened, a strong sense of concern grew in her chest.

"Men are so stupid." Nel remarked, taking Ai's hand into both of hers to comfort the forlorn girl.

"Excuse you." growled a gruff voice from beside the girls. Grimmjow stood with his arms folded, looking less than pleased that Nel was once again sitting on the job. With how silently he appeared, Ai wondered if he was a ninja, or maybe a cat. Nel startled, "B-Boss- ahh! S-Sorry... Ai's really upset. I was just-" "Helping. I know." His voice came out low and vexed. Grimmjow glanced between the two girls before his eyes settled on Ai.

"Don't be bringing your man troubles in here..." he grumbled. This time it was Ai's turn to scowl, certainly in no mood. "I'm not bringing my man troubles anywhere. At least Nel was nice enough to ask instead of coming to my table with a bad attitude."

Both the customers, and the staff fell into a hush. Nel's eyes became saucers. Slowly, she slid to her feet, hoping to cautiously diffuse the fight waiting to happen. "Boss, calm down! Ai is really upset! Besides, she's still our customer and we've gotta take care of her."

Grimmjow grit his teeth, barking back, "Break up with the idiot if you're that pissed about it!" Ai's voice raised as she abruptly stood from the table.

"Ai-" Nel started. In a flurry of movements, Ai gathered her things and stormed out of the cafe. Nel turned to her boss and clicked her teeth, "You try being a girl in that kind of situation! Jerk! Moron!" she screamed, tossing her apron at the, now bewildered, man before leaving the store herself.

"Why the fuck am I the bad guy!?" Silence filled the cafe, all eyes watching Grimmjow. "GO BACK TO YOUR COFFEES." He shouted, storming into the back room.

From his place behind the counter, Ulquiorra let out a soft sigh, both at his boss' crassness and at the clamor taking over the cafe. Since Nel and Grimmjow had both stormed off, he decided to quietly clear Ai's table.

Ulquiorra paused, as he lifted the untouched cappuccino. 'Ai's phone?'

It buzzed suddenly as he quitely decided to give it to Nel when she came back. "Hm?" The message read 'From: Sousuke'.

His eyes widened slightly, "...Oh."


	3. You Should Feel Bad

3\. You Should Feel Bad 

"Why the fuck should I feel bad?!" Grimmjow exclaimed, his voice much louder than it needed to be.

The cafe was barren, today. Not a soul had been seen since breakfast, but it gave Grimmjow the freedom to sit at the bar as he pleased. The ever-present scowl on his face didn't seem to stop the scolding he was receiving.

Nel stood behind the bar, frowning very deeply. "Ai hasn't come in in three days!" "Maybe she's busy!" he tried to retort.

Seemingly out of nowhere, Ulquiorra spoke up, "Ai's university is on break this week." The boss felt his scowl deepen, "No one asked you!" Rolling his eyes, he appeared unable to escape Nel's wrath.

"I called her to come get her phone today, Grimmjow. You better not be a dick!"

"You DO realize I'm your boss, right!?" "Yeah, well you're a crappy one!"

A snort came from Ichigo, who had silently been doing the inventory that Grimmjow was too lazy to do. "She's got a point, you know." he began, glancing at the wholly unamused man, "Ai was our only regular in a long time."

The bell above the door jingled, bringing everyone's attention to the girl walking through it. Nel let out a gleeful squeal, "Ai! You came!" She ran around the counter to pull the girl into an unwanted hug. "Well, yeah... you have my phone." "Well, come in, come in! Let me get you a cup of coffee." Pulling her to the bar, Nel shot a glare at her boss, "Make her coffee!"

Grimmjow stared at Nel like she'd grown another head, "The fuck?"

Sitting next to him, Ai folded her hands in her lap. "It's fine, Nel. His coffee would probably taste bad anyway." The icy jab gained raised eyebrows from the man. He narrowed his eyes at her, "You've never tasted my coffee." "Then I guess you should get to making it then."

Grimmjow felt rage boiling in his chest, the muffled snickers from his employees not helping in the slightest. Connecting his fist to the counter with a loud slam, Grimmjow stood. "Fine. I'll make your fucking coffee." His anger only built higher as he watched a small smirk tug at Ai's lips.

Nel took a seat on Ai's other side, as Grimmjow begrudgingly settled at the station to begin the coffee that would make their beloved customer eat her words. "Here. Boss found it after... y'know..." Nel smiled as she handed Ai her phone. A relieved sigh escaped her. "Thanks. I was going crazy without it."

Quietly, Ai went through her missed messages. Her heart lept and sunk within a few short moments. Sousuke had sent many texts over the last three days. The first few started out with 'Forgive me's and 'I'm worried about you', but quickly dissolved into 'Where are you' 'Are you with another guy', worse ones following.

"Ai?" Nel spoke up, noticing how quiet she'd gone. Ai quickly stuffed her phone into her pocket, and hid her feelings with a smile. "Sorry, just seeing the messages I missed. They're nothing special."

"Oh, okay. Well, anyway I was saying-! We totally missed you!" "It's only been a few days..." Ai chuckled, the cheerful personality putting her at ease. "She misses people easily." Ichigo added, leaning on the counter. "Why wouldn't I? I'm stuck with you three all day!" A pout came as Nel glared up at him accusingly.

Ai watched the playful bickering, surprised at how pleasant it felt to be sitting with this group. Nel had become her friend quickly, and she didn't mind talking to Ichigo or Ulquiorra now and again. The only problem seemed to be that her and the boss didn't get along.

"Here." barked the man that was just plaguing her thoughts, the mug being put down with a sharp clatter. "Enjoy your stinkin' coffee."

The reflection in the dark brown liquid stared back at her with a displeased expression, that expression was quickly turned on her server. "What is it?" Ai asked cautiously. Deadpan eyes met her, "It's coffee." Grimmjow stated, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "It looks like death." "I'm going to force feed it to you if you don't just drink the damn thing."

"Fine." Ai pouted, taking the mug with both hands. Tentatively, she sipped at it. The displeased expression returned as she looked up at Grimmjow. "It's bitter." she spoke, vaguely reminding him of the tone of a five year old.

"It's. COFFEE."

"Ai always gets a cappuccino or a latte." Ulquiorra interjected quietly, receiving a death-stare in response.

Setting the cup down, Ai stared up at Grimmjow silently, Grimmjow glared at her in response. Several minutes of silence spread between the two before a growl came. "FINE. I'll make you a fuckin' latte!"

After several moments of grumbling, cursing and growling, a latte was placed in front of Ai. This time, a badly drawn picture of a cat was in the foam. Ai bit her lip, willing herself to suppress the giggle that threatened to escape.

"What?"

Ai was losing the battle. Even as she covered her mouth with a hand, laughter quietly escaped. "Why does the cat have one eye?" Grimmjow grit his teeth, a blush barely showing on the angry man. "It doesn't have only one eye! The other one is right there!" "I thought that was the ear..." "WOMAN, I WILL BAN YOU."

Fits of giggles forced Ai to put her head down against the counter. She held her aching sides as laughter erupted. Both embarrassed and frustrated, he simply watched her cackle at his expense for several moments.

"I'm taking this back." Grimmjow growled, reaching for the cup. "No, no!" Ai exclaimed, waving her hand. "I'll drink it... Thank you." With a delighted sigh, she took the new mug. "Whatever..." he spat sorely, leaning back on the other counter.

Nel smiled hopefully, as the giggling finally subsided. "So, you'll come back?" Ai met her eyes with confusion, "Who said I wasn't coming back? I had a paper to turn in over break. I was just finishing it at home."

"Oh."

Suddenly feeling a glare, Nel chuckled, "W-Well, I'm glad you aren't upset anymore! I was worried..." Ai shook her head, "I was for a while, but I'd say the deformed cat is apology enough." She grinned, looking up at Grimmjow.

At Grimmjow's expense, the four shared another laugh, and the cafe was harmonious once again.


	4. How Can You Tell?

4\. How Can You Tell? 

Snow was upon the crew at Cafe Sixx, slowing the already snail-paced business to a stand-still. Being late-November, the weather was an understandable frustration, but a frustration none-the-less. In a show of irritation, Grimmjow pressed his forehead against the glass window, and growled. A blanket of white as far as the eye can see, even their outside-tables had been buried under the devil substance.

"Grim, you might as well relax. There's no way we're getting customers in this..." called Ichigo, poking his head out from the back room. Grimmjow only growled again in response. Stupid snow. Stupid November. Stupid street-plow that never showed up that morning.

Amidst his mental tirade on the elements, he failed to notice Ai, until she was standing opposite of him outside the window. She stared up at him, probably trying to assess his awkward position, hunched over with his forehead stuck to the glass.

"What are you doing?" she asked, prompting an embarrassed blush to spread on the man's face. Scowling suddenly, Grimmjow chose to retaliate by shouting, "What are YOU doing?" Ai paused, assuming what she was doing was obvious. "Waiting to come inside..." she explained slowly. Her hand pointed in the direction of the entrance, "Your door is locked."

In that moment, Grimmjow wanted to smash his forehead through the glass, but had decided that fixing it would cost entirely too much money. Instead, he chose to just unlock the door, and open it for the waiting woman outside.

Ai hurried in, shaking the snow from her head and letting out an audible shiver.

"I meant..." Grimmjow started, his voice at a normal octave now. "What are you doing outside in THAT." He motioned to the snow, watching her peel the soaked cloth coat from herself. Decidedly distracted, Ai shrugged, "I wanted coffee."

Grimmjow snatched her coat away, hanging it on the coat rack. "Where's Nel? ...and Ulquiorra for that matter?" Ai asked, parking herself comfortably at the bar. With his eyes narrowing suspiciously, Grimmjow made his way to the machines to start on Ai's drink. "They live too far away to come here in this crap." "Are you the only one here?" she inquired, surprised. "No," he answered, "Ichigo is in the back room." "You guys live close?"

"You're asking a lot of questions." Grimmjow noted, looking back at the snow-soaked woman. A pout came over her, "I'm just curious."

He raised an eyebrow, staring boredly at the wall as he debated with himself whether he believed her or not. "I think you need to stop hanging out with Nel so much." muttered Grimmjow, before answering her question anyway. "Ichigo does. I live above the cafe." "I see." she said, nodding in understanding.

Silence fell between them, as Ai finally ran out of things to ask. At the forefront of his mind, there was a question Grimmjow wanted to ask, but wondered if he'd be better off just keeping it to himself. Ai had to know what she was doing was weird. There hadn't been a soul on the street since the snow started, yet here she was, sitting in his cafe with no explanation.

'Maybe she really likes snow?' Grimmjow asked himself sarcastically.

Finishing up, he set the warm mug down for Ai. The stare she was giving it went on much too long for Grimmjows' liking. Feeling a growl escape, he grit his teeth. "What's wrong with it this time?"

"No picture?" she asked, almost seeming innocent. Grimmjow glared at her, "You're not funny." "I'm a little funny."

He watched her shrug, and pick up the mug with both hands. Besides being soaked, she looked less put together than usual, like she had thrown her clothes on and rushed out in a hurry. The question on Grimmjow's tongue became more palpable, but he was interupted before he could ask it.

Ai let out a comfortable sigh as the coffee warmed her from the inside out, "That feels much better. It really is freezing out." Continuing to stare at her, Grimmjow narrowed his eyes. "Well, it's kind of a blizzard outside. What were you thinking coming out in it? You're going to catch pneumonia."

"Aww, Grim, you almost sound worried about me." she teased, a smile coming to her lightly glossed lips. Grimmjow scowled in response, and answered too quickly, "No!" he grit his teeth for the second time, "Nel would rip my arms off and tell me it's my fault." Ai stifled her giggle. "No, I won't let her do that. Who else would make my coffee?" "Literally any one else in the cafe." "You're mean." Ai pouted, glaring half-heartedly at him over the rim of her cup.

Grimmjow could only roll his eyes. Was Ai always this talkative? He supposed he wouldn't really know. Over the three months she'd been coming, Ai really only talked to Nel. Well, Nel, Ichigo, and sometimes Ulquiorra when he was feeling talkative.

Okay, so, he was the only one she didn't talk to often.

That wasn't Grimmjow's fault, he was busy taking care of the cafe most of the time. He didn't have time to take frequent breaks like Nel, except for on days like today. Absently, he supposed it wouldn't be too weird to want to strike up a conversation when there were only two people in the room. It's better than an awkward silence.

"Is there something on my face?" Ai asked. Grimmjow hadn't realized he was staring, and now had to cover up the fact that he'd zoned out watching her.

"You hate bitter drinks, but you like coffee. How does that make sense?" he asked, folding his arms. Ai stared at him for a moment before shrugging, "Coffee doesn't always have to be bitter. Especially when you put cream and sugar in it, and the occasional deformed cat." she giggled. "Would you drop the deformed cat thing!?" "Nope."

Grimmjow let out a frustrated sigh. "Ulquiorra draws me nice things." she spoke through a pout, once again sipping her drink. She was met with another glare, "Well don't ask me to make you coffee, then!" Ai continued to pout, though it was quickly broken by a small smile. "I dunno, I think I'm getting used to the taste of yours."

"I'm serving you black coffee next time." "Gross, please don't."

"Are you sure you don't want me to ask Ichigo to take you home?" Grimmjow grumbled, watching Ai slide into her coat. "I'll be fine. My apartment is only a block away."

Without another word, she waved to the two remaining men, and quietly left the shop. They stayed in silence for a few moments before Grimmjow grumbled.

"Who goes out in the middle of a snow storm for coffee?" Ichigo paused thoughtfully, before replying, "Maybe something was going on at her place." Grimmjow looked back at him, a deep frown coming over his face, "How can you tell?"

Ichigo shrugged, "She just had a two hour conversation with you."

Grimmjow would have glared at Ichigo if he didn't already know he was right.


	5. Deadline

5\. Deadline

The jingle of the door opening cut through the quiet chatter that filled Cafe Sixx. Save for maybe two other people, the cafe was particularly empty today. So, any entering customer gained full attention from the staff.

"Welcome to Cafe Sixx!" Nel cheered, bowing to the tall gentleman. As she rose, and gained a better look at him, she felt a heat rise to her cheeks. He seemed lean, beneath the lazily fit sweater. Pitch black hair fell and framed his face, but managed not to cover his equally dark eyes under long eyelashes that reminded Nel faintly of sapphires. 'Waaah, he's hot!' Nel mentally cheered. Suddenly enamored, she just barely came back to her senses as he started to answer her.

"I'm looking for a woman named Ai..." Nel mentally remarked at how deep his voice was. "Ai?" she asked, pulled from her own thoughts "Ah, she's at the last booth. Can I bring you anything?" "Just a regular coffee, please." Nel nodded, still entranced. She watched the man make his way to the table, before starting to chat politely with Ai.

From behind the counter, an irritated, but familiar growl errupted, "Nel! Wake your ass up!"

Startled out of her stupor, she turned to the men behind the counter. "Hey," she started, voice lowered to a whisper, "How do you think he knows Ai?" Grimmjow only glared at the woman who was now uncomfortably close to his face. "How the fuck should I know?" "Think it could be her boyfriend? He's def' cute enough! And it totally explains why she's dressed so cute today." "Why would that matter?"

Nel stared at her boss, wondering if he was dropped as a child, "Appearance is important! Girls dress extra cute when they like a guy. Duh." "That's stupid. Who cares about that?" "I can see why you don't have a girlfriend." "I've had girlfriends!" Grimmjow barked, slamming his fist on the counter. With her eyes narrowing suspiciously, Nel opened and closed her mouth a few times, before deciding not to repeat her thoughts aloud.

"Still. I wanna know if he's her beau or not." "I. Don't. Knoooow. Also, why do you care?" Nel stared at Grimmjow, "She's my friend. Duh. And if this is the creeper that made her feel hella crappy the day you bullied her, I wanna know."

"I did NOT bully her!" He growled, mildly offended by this accusation. "If it is that guy, it's her own business anyway!"

"It's not." Ichigo finally interjected, leaning on the counter by Grimmjow, who stared up at him with an incredibly confused expression. "Not?" "That's not her boyfriend. That's her editor." he continued. Now both Nel and Grimmjow stared at the ginger haired man. "How do you know, Icchi?"

Visibly irritated, Ichigo sighed heavily as he turned his attention to Grimmjow. "She told both of us this morning when she came in that she invited him here for a meeting! Grimmjow, she asked 'you' in particular. Am I the only one that listens when she talks?!" "I listen!" Grimmjow defended, before quietly adding, "...sometimes." Ichigo rolled his eyes.

"Nel... Here." Ulquiorra said, appearing at Grimmjow's other side, gesturing to the cup of coffee he had placed on the counter. Suddenly remembering her job, Nel took the cup. "Thanks, Ulqui!" she smiled. A thought made her grin widen, 'With this, I can listen in with no problem!' With new determination, she was off to serve the new gentleman.

"You know your deadline is coming up, right? If I don't have at least a rough draft soon, I won't be able to hold off the publishers for much longer." "I know..." Ai sighed, staring forlornly at the rabbit drawn in the foam of her latte. "I just need a little more time." "Ai, you've had six months, and four push-backs already. I'm not sure what you want me to do."

She had known her editor for upwards of six years now, and he had always been one of the few people that supported her dream. Byakuya had become a good friend and ally to her, leaving her feeling very depressed that she would be letting him down once again.

A soft sigh escaped the older man, "Ai, I want to help you. I read your first few chapters, and they're very good for someone your age. You could write a best-seller if you put your mind to it." Ai's frown only seemed to deepen. "I am trying. It's just... I've had school to worry about and other things on my plate." She mumbled, as her brow furrowed and she began to visibly tensed.

"Other things?" Byakuya started, before Nel appeared at the side of their table.

"Here's your coffee, sir!" Her cheery voice announced with a smile, glancing between the two. Byakuya watched Nel silently, as the woman turned to Ai with pointed attention.

"Ai! Is there anything else I can get you?" she asked, her tone intently gentler than before. Pulled from her wallowing, Ai could only shake her head in a daze "Um... No, I'm okay. Thanks, Nel."

Nel nodded, lingering a few more minutes before returning to the bar, but continued to watch their table a little too intensely.

"A friend?" Byakuya asked cooly. He fixed his coffee before sipping it. Ai nodded, a small smile coming to her face. "Yeah. Nel is definitely a keeper." "I'm surprised." he retorted, "You're not usually drawn people like her. Are you broadening your horizons?" Pouting, Ai shot a halfhearted glare at him, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Byakuya shrugged, leaning his elbows on the table. "When I met you, you had two friends." "I was 19. Two was plenty." "Now you have your friends at uni and a whole cafe." "More like 3/4ths of a cafe"

"I'm happy for you." A small smirk graced Byakuya's features. "Smart ass."


	6. Once You Had A Dream

6\. Once You Had A Dream

[December, three years earlier]

Snow fell silently on that particular Saturday afternoon. The Espada tea room was nearly full, and bustling with life, which had the entire staff on their toes.

"Grimmjow." Ulquiorra spoke, watching the taller man sitting on top of some crates. He appeared to not be listening, "Grimmjow, you're needed inside." Taking a long drag of the cigarette in between his fingers, Grimmjow blew the smoke in his coworkers' face. "Buzz off. I ain't goin' back in there. The boss can bite me if he thinks I'm going to work a straight double bussing his tables and punch out just before my times' up just so he can pay me less."

Ulquiorra stared at him, refraining from starting an argument with the perpetually angry man. He waved away the smoke assaulting his face. "Do you want me to tell him that?"

Grimmjow clicked his teeth, and flicked away the nub that used to be a cigarette. Dropping down from the crates, a spark of determination flickered in his eyes. "Know what? I'm gonna tell him myself." "Are you sure that's a good idea?" "Aren't you sick of working for this asshole?" "Well..." Ulquiorra began to trail off, not really wanting to agree with Grimmjow, at least out loud.

"I'm gonna give that ass a peace of my mind." With that declaration, Grimmjow walked past Ulquiorra, lumbering into the main room. The other employees watched the one-man-commotion make his way to the back room.

"Grimmjow, stop. What do you think you're doing?" Tosen scolded, blocking him from entering the managers' office. A growl came as a response, "Givin' that asshole a piece of my mind." Tosen refused to budge, holding out his arm in hopes to prevent any further commotion. "Aizen is on an important phone call right now. Besides that, you're 20 minutes late. "Screw that!" Grimmjow barked, shoving the assistant manager away from the door, storming into the office with his teeth gritting. Tosen could only sigh in irritation and urge the others to go back to work.

Slamming the door behind him with quite a force, leaving the man inside to stare, with a very unamused expression. "I see you've forgotten how to knock." He slowly placed the phone, that had been on his ear, onto the desk. "Ha-ha, you're not funny. I'm here for a reason!" Grimmjow growled, his hands on the desk. "I hope it's a good one." "Aizen, you can take your stuffy tea house and shove it! I'm done with this shit!" He threw his apron onto the desk in anger.

The wide smirk on Aizen's face only serving to aggravate him more. "Do you think you're not replacable, Grimmjow? Go. Another person will have your spot before you have the chance to look back."

"Y-yeah, well, I'm taking Ulquiorra with me! I'll snatch your business right out from under you!" he threatened. Aizen went quiet, before starting to laugh. Grimmjow scowled at the cackling, balling his fists. "Go ahead, Grimmjow. I'll enjoy watching you try."

In a growing fury of anger, Grimmjow left the office, grabbing Ulquiorra by the back of the shirt as he was leaving.

"Um. Where are we going?" "I just quit for you." "Um... I don't think you get to make that decision for m-" "Too late, dammit! Just shut up!"

"You did what!?" Ichigo exclaimed, causing the bar full of people to suddenly hush. Grimmjow glanced around cautiously before glaring at Ichigo's volume. "You don't gotta sound so surprised! You heard me! I quit. That place fuckin' sucks. So, I left, and I took Ulquiorra with me."

"Why did-" Closing his eyes, Ichigo took a moment to process the story that Grimmjow had just told him. "So, what are you going to do now?"

After pausing to drink from his glass, "We're gonna open a cafe!" "Wait- what?" "You and me. We're gonna take the money I got saved and open our own cafe. We'll make it way better than that shitty tea room, and completely rip that assholes' customers out from under him!" Grimmjow slammed his fist against the bar, turning almost completely to the man at his side, who seemed to be trying to lean away.

"You know this is an insane idea, right? Not to mention, something like that isn't going to happen over-night..." "Don't care. C'mon, Kurosaki! You've got those dumb business classes. You can be the vice-boss. Plus, we've already got an employee!"

A deep sigh escaped. Ichigo stared at Grimmjow for a long time before rolling his eyes. "This isn't gonna be easy, you know. You can't give this up halfway through." "I know that! I'm not an idiot. I actually thought about this."

"That's surprising." Ichigo retorted, finishing his drink and ignoring the glare he was getting. "Do you know where you want to put this place?"

A grin broke on Grimmjow's face, "Yeah. There's this little place that's been unused for a while, and theres an apartment on the second floor. It looks good for a start."

"Alright, alright... I'll help you out."

"Why do you always come back here to sleep?" Ichigo sighed, watching the supposed 'boss' laying on the sacks of coffee beans in the back room. Groaning with frustration, Ichigo gave a swift kick to Grimmjow's leg. "Wake up!"

With a snort and a surprised noise, Grimmjow sat up straight, "Wha- Why'd you wake me up?!" he growled. "Um, because we're busy and you're not sleeping back here to get out of it." "Tch. You're not my mom." he grumbled, getting up and rubbing his face. "Thank god." Ichigo spat back, sarcasm dripping as he rolled his eyes and left for the main room.

Lazily following, Grimmjow scanned the busy cafe. On one hand, he was happy it was busy, on the other, he was sorely beginning to miss sleeping.

"Bad night sleep?" A soft voice called from beside him. Following the sound, Grimmjow found Ai sitting at the end of the bar with her laptop. "I guess." he replied with a grumble. He watched Ai smile softly, "Drink some tea before bed. Chamomile is supposed to be good for the nerves."

Furrowing his eyebrows, Grimmjow leaned on the counter. "I hate tea." "You hate a lot of things." A snort escaped the tired man, conceding to the banter, "Tea doesn't taste as good as coffee." "Depends on the type."

The usual hum of the cafe became a good sound to Grimmjow's ears, telling him that he was getting closer and closer to that three-year dream.


End file.
